Government

I believe in devolving decision making to the lower practical level of government because those closest to a problem are best equipped to handle it. This means allowing cities and localities to pass their own laws on most issues without being overruled by the state. This also means providing more funding to cities and localities to use as they see fit. This is a reversal of the last 8 years of Republican government that has steadily increased the concentration of power in Columbus.

Ohio Anti-Corruption Act

One of my first priorities once elected is passing the Ohio Anti-Corruption Act which is based to some extent on the proposed American Anti-Corruption Act. This will include policies to limit the amount of lobbying that is done in Columbus and end the revolving door between elected representatives and lobbyists. This will also limit campaign contributions from unions and corporations and bring an end to PACs and dark money. I demand an entirely transparent government for Ohio and an end to the rent seeking and crony capitalism. The first step in solving Ohio’s problems and rebuilding our economy is cleaning up the government and removing the corruption in Columbus. Ohioans deserve a government for Ohioans, not special interests and those with the biggest checkbook.

Unicameral Legislature

I don’t see much point in the state senate. It is not like the senate at the federal level where each state is apportioned a set number of senators. The state senate is almost no different than the state house, it even has basically the same proportion of Republicans and Democrats. It is an extra an unnecessary step and an unnecessary cost to taxpayers.

Eliminate the Position of Lieutenant Governor

It is a pointless position that costs Ohio taxpayers $140,000 annually. If we are concerned about what will happen should a governor resign or die we will simply follow a line of succession of the other statewide elected officials.

21st Century Government

It is my goal that the government of Ohio be brought into the 21st century and be as fully digitized as possible. Within the next decade Ohioans should be able to vote, pay fines and taxes, participate in government, and handle nearly all bureaucratic nonsense from the convenience of a laptop or phone. This digitalization will save the government money and save time and costs for Ohio citizens. It is in fact possible, we just need the vision and commitment.

Enfranchisement

I am for democracy and greater enfranchisement. I want people to vote and participate in government because I believe that results in ultimately the best outcomes. To this end it should be as easy to vote as possible in a secure way. This means abundant polling locations open for extended periods of time, online voting, and the right to vote not being infringed. We should also lower the voting age perhaps to 17, maybe even to 16. The goal here is to get people active in government early. This will improve turnout and improve active participation in government. The usual arguments I see against this are that young people lack the mental capacity to make good choices and that they will just vote the way their parents do. It is already the case that people vote the way their parents do for decades after leaving their parent’s home, this is largely a result of genetics and the way one was raised, and I don’t think many parents would argue that their teenage children are anything if not independent minded. To the other argument I just point out that we do not require people to be of proven intelligence to vote and intelligence doesn’t necessarily correlate with who one votes for.